母 (mǔ) is a Chinese character meaning “mother”. It is written from ㇗ (vertical-turning stroke) and ㇆ (horizontal-turning hook stroke) and ㇔ (dot stroke) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇔ (dot stroke), and takes 5 strokes.
Build the character for “mother”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
㇗ + ㇆ + ㇔ + ㇐ + ㇔
Overlapping structure
- ㇗ vertical-turning stroke unknown
- ㇆ horizontal-turning hook stroke unknown
- ㇔ dot stroke unknown
- ㇐ horizontal stroke unknown
- ㇔ dot stroke unknown
Structure from: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（现代字形笔画拆分：第 1 笔竖折、第 2 笔横折钩、第 3 与第 5 笔两点、第 4 笔长横）
Memory aid
Two strokes wrap the frame shut — the vertical-turn (㇗) on the left and under, the hooked turn (㇆) over the top and down the right. Inside sit two dots (㇔), one above and one below, and the long bar (㇐) runs straight through both: a mother holding everything together.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
5 strokes
In real words
- 父母fù mǔparents母 = mǔ
- 母乳mǔ rǔbreast milk母 = mǔspoken asmú rǔ
Go deeper
All readings
mother
mother; female (of an animal); something that gives rise to others
母亲；雌性的；能产生其他事物的本源。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 父母fù mǔparents母 = mǔ
- 母乳mǔ rǔbreast milk母 = mǔspoken asmú rǔ
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 母 mean?
母 (mǔ) means mother; female (of an animal); something that gives rise to others.
How do you pronounce 母?
It is pronounced mǔ.
What parts is 母 made of?
㇗ (vertical-turning stroke) and ㇆ (horizontal-turning hook stroke) and ㇔ (dot stroke) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇔ (dot stroke). The recorded source is: hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（现代字形笔画拆分：第 1 笔竖折、第 2 笔横折钩、第 3 与第 5 笔两点、第 4 笔长横）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 母 have?
5. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 母?
母. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 母?
Common ones are 父母. The reading of 母 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.